Chosen Destiny
by Child-of-the-Dawn
Summary: SPOILERSFrom Starcrossed to JLU's endONESHOT for the ficathon. John does some thinking and makes a decision as to what exactly it is he wants. HGGL and strongandsassy!Mari


Ficathon Fic for JLManiac

SPOILERS-basically from The end of season 2 of JLU through the end of the series (JLU).

Requested Scenario : Closure to HG/GL/HM/VX quadrangle

Written for the DCAU ficathon. Since the creators decided we didnt deserve a real ending ( they claim Rex existing in Batman Beyond is proof. Bull.) heres one that satisfy's HG/GL and makes Vixen look like a real classy lady at the same time.

John Stewart could take no more. His words from over a month before haunted him like the conscience of a murderer, which he could, but also could not be, depending on how one looked at it. Not the way to spend New Years Eve. And it all came back to one sentence.

"I'm staying with Mari."

He'd said it, but felt for no more than a second that he was no longer fate's fool as Shayera's face went from a look of delighted surprise ( her reaction had been better than he'd expected, at least she'd seemed to understand his reluctance to tell her) to one of crushed, bewildered hurt.

And then he'd turned around and left. For a month after that, he'd sincerely enjoyed time with Mari, but the nightmares kept him from giving too much of himself.

He dreamt of the nonexistent future. The least painful were Diana's disappearance and the sight of a broken-eyed Bruce, bereft of all real hope. Then he'd hear Virgil's scream as he died and he'd watch the young man he knew now fall into the crevice instead. And the new Batman…while he hadn't known the kid, he'd liked him instantly because of his Flash-like humor, and the fact that John could tell Old Bruce cared about him deeply.

And Rex. A man who, within five minutes of meeting his father, had attained the look of a boy trying his best to show his dad what a good man he'd become. And John was then haunted by the stinging idea that he'd killed his own child. What would Rex think of him now, with a woman not Rex's mother?

It didn't matter. The world ruled by Chronos would never come to pass, though the Tomorrow Knight would find a man repeating a single moment in his life with great confusion.

But Rex existed. And Shayera was alone now, having finally been freed from Carter's(or was it Katar's?)obsession after the events at the museum.

Chay'ara. His Queen, his lover, his life. And Shayera. His Past, His love, his pain. All of it was maddening, especially after having witnessed it all. He could still see her green eyes rolled towards the ceiling, her arms reaching out to Bashari, to him, in her last seconds. The sight made him jittery, made him check on her every so often. There was, in the end, no denying it.

He'd made a mistake. Fate's fool he was indeed, trying to push away his life, his true wife, his unborn son, because he felt the decision wasn't his own.

John slumped down into his seat. He could take no more of this. Did it honestly matter if he wasn't in control? Hadn't that been how he'd felt loving Shayera, and hadn't he _liked _it?

He was doing what his aunt Clarice had warned him against.

"Johnny-boy, don't ever look a gift horse in the mouth, you hear? When something good comes your way, _take it _." She'd scolded him once, when he'd snubbed a gift from a relative he'd not liked. The gift hadn't been a bad one, but the old pocket watch wasn't what John had been expecting. He'd begged and begged for a bike like the other boys had, and been far to naïve to realize they couldn't afford it. And here he was now, snubbing a gorgeous woman whose own pain made her more fragile than she realized and a son who could be a hero. For what? Mari was wonderful, someone he could always see as a friend and confidante regardless of their relationship status. But she didn't know about the future he'd seen or the past he'd lived. And it wasn't right.

He stood and decided in the second he took his coat. Break up with Mari he couldn't do in the normal way. He had to tell her everything and let her decide for herself if being with a conflicted man was worth it to her.

The flight to Milan, where she was wrapping up a photo shoot, seemed to be the longest he'd ever flown himself, but he'd managed to arrive just as Mari was leaving.

"John?" She was surprised, but he could tell she knew something was up. She had excellent perception about people. After all, she had made friends with Shayera despite everything.

"Mari, we've got to talk." He took her hands in his and sat her down on a bench outside her hotel room.

She was mildly amused by Virgil's joke, not surprised in the least by Rex, and completely shocked by his life as Bashari. But, he reckoned, she'd taken it all extremely well, better than he had even. The fact that she wasn't angry that he'd kept it from here was astounding. But, then again, how could he of told her when he hadn't been sure of what he'd seen himself! And then he laid the choice at her feet.

"Mari, I hope you realized I find you fascinating and a wonderful woman at that." She nodded slowly, but kindly kept quiet while he continued," but _I _can't imagine being what you need, after all this. Real or not, past life or no, what I've experienced has messed with my head a hell of a lot. And there's still the part of me that loves Shayera, something you've told me you have for others too." She nodded. One day about a month or two into their relationship, Mari had told him about the two deep relationships she'd had in her life, and how both still kept special places in her heart. In fact, the first was her best friend. It had helped him back then to hear, especially since Shayera's assurance that her feelings for him were never lies had been stuck in the back of his mind every waking moment.

"John." She said, sadly, closing her eyes." I told Shayera I'd fight for you to the last. But now I've heard all this……boo, you're miserable. And really, haven't you already made up your mind? Fight for you I will, John. But I'm not sitting around to let you dump me eventually." Her eyes were black as coal, and just as hard, as she looked at him. Then she sighed and turned away.

"Go." she said, eyes shut and breathing slow and measured. He knew that would be their last word for a few months while her wounds healed. But Mari stood with him and hugged him, a promise that all three of them would be alright in the end.

Without a word, he took off, Mari watching him from the ground.

"John!" She shouted a moment later, and he stopped, hoping it wasn't a change of heart. Looking down, her pursed lips told him otherwise.

"If you screw it up with her, I swear to the heavens that I'll help her kick your ass from Earth to Oa!" A smirk came to her lips with the vow, and John smiled back. He nodded, and then pulsed off into the evening sky, towards the headquarters of the Justice League.

When he found Shayera, she was playing checkers with Wally in the common room. For a moment John just watched them, two of the most important people in his life. From the doorway where he stood, they appeared even more like siblings than usual.

"Shayera, can I have a word?" he said, meeting her brilliant green eyes and Wally's suspicious gaze in turn. But Wally turned away, as if John was nothing worth noticing.

"Sure. I'll be a minute, Wally. Don't you dare cheat; I know where my pieces are." Wally laughed and made the Boy Scout sign with his right hand as Shayera accepted John's proffered arm and walked out to the balcony on the fourth floor, across from her checkers game.

"Yes?" She let go of his arm and stood looking out the window.

"I'm sorry." A stunned look overcame Shayera's features. She turned to look at him, incredulous.

"Sorry? That's all you came here to say!" She was getting angry now, and he knew it, so he threw his speech out the window and kissed her. A surprised 'umph!' was all she got out, and before he realized it, she was letting him kiss her, though not returning with much passion. When the kiss ended, he held her close and looked down at her with the most serious expression he'd ever worn. And considering his strict attitude the past seven years, that was saying something.

"Before you kick my ass, let me tell you that from the moment I said I'd stay with Mari, I've been unable to sleep more than three hours straight, because all I see is Egypt and you, and Rex. God, Shayera, I see him all the time in my nightmares, and in my dreams. I told you I wasn't leaving Mari because I didn't want to be fate's fool. But then I realized that being handed a life with you was a gift…and Shayera, I love you. I've never stopped loving you. And I've been a complete ass." He took a deep breath and let her go," And its not about Rex. He only showed me that I want you, that I want a life and a family with you. I always have, from the second I knew that bomb was going to blow in Vegas. I realized then that you were something precious, and I still believe that."

He closed his eyes and kept them shut, afraid that this would all backfire. A moment or two passed in which he was sure she'd walked away, but then a gentle touch on his arm brought him back to the moment. He opened his eyes to see Shayera looking up at him serenely. Gently she reached out and held his face in her hands. He almost sighed in relief. Good, he wasn't sure he could handle getting beat up by a woman who barely stood 5'7".

"Are you certain this is what you want?" She asked, staring at him with all the intensity of a sun.

"Yes, if you'll have me. And besides, I've been threatened by Mari with an ass-kicking if I screwed this up again." Shayera's lip twitched in amusement, though he could see the relief in her eyes at the mention of Mari knowing of what he'd decided. It was, he realized, another reason he loved the lively angel.

"I love you John." She said, before she buried her face in his shoulder. After a moment he could feel rather than hear little sobs coming from the winged warrior. He wrapped his arms around her, rubbing circles in the space between her wings. When sniffles finally succeeded the sobs, he kissed the top of her head, his own relief overpowering his nerves.

Over the top of Shayera's head, John saw Wally come into the archway, one of those goofy, sappy-moment smiles on his face. John was certain that, under the mask, there were teary-eyes as well. He nodded in approval and left as quietly as he'd come. John smiled at him and dipped his head, capturing Shayera's lips for another long-denied kiss.


End file.
